Delhi gang-rape: 10 developments in police investigations

New Delhi: Across India, people protested today against the crime that has incensed and shamed a nation. The 23-year-old who was gang-raped on a bus in Delhi on Sunday night is fighting for her life.

Here are 10 big developments in the police investigation:

Four of the six men accused of the gang-rape have been arrested. Three of them confessed to the crime in court today. "Hang me, I am guilty," said one.

But of these four men, only one has agreed to participate in an identification parade tomorrow at Tihar jail. The police will use the help of the young man who was accompanying the woman who was assaulted. The couple was hit with iron rods by the six men on the bus.

The Delhi High Court has asked the police commissioner, Neeraj Sharma, to file a report on the investigation within two days. The court was severe in its criticism of the police, pointing out that the bus, which had tinted windows, passed through several checkpoints without being stopped or searched.

The police has collected forensic evidence from the bus used for the gang-rape. Sources say that after stripping the victim and her friend and throwing them semi-naked from the bus, the alleged rapists took it to a secluded spot and washed it to delete blood stains and traces of semen. They burnt the couple's clothes but their shoes and phones were not destroyed and have been recovered by the police.

The bus was owned by a private operator named Dinesh Yadav, who had leased six vehicles to a school. The police will file a case against Mr Yadav since the bus was not parked with him, but was in the custody of the driver, Ram Singh.

The Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde met with senior Delhi policemen this morning to plan better safety for women in Delhi. The police are identifying areas near malls, and markets and will increase patrolling along these routes at night.

All vehicles with tinted windows will be impounded. Bus operators have been ordered to post photos of drivers on vehicles. Private buses need to be parked at their owners' premises; owners will be responsible for the vehicles at all times.

The police will stop cars and buses in which groups of men are traveling and check these thoroughly.

Nearly 1,300 poorly-lit stretches have been identified in Delhi. More policemen will be posted at night here.

Around 350 more vehicles will be made available to police control rooms.